The present invention relates generally to mobile networks.
Mobile devices have the capability to connect to networks, e.g., the Internet, using multiple access interfaces or technologies and to maintain sessions over links associated with the multiple access interfaces. Access interfaces or technologies include those associated with IEEE 802.11 networks, as well as those associated with wireless broadband networks, as for example single carrier radio transmission technology (1XRTT), general packet radio service (GPRS), “evolution, data only” (EVDO), high-speed data packet access (HSDPA), universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS), and worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX).
Interfaces provided to enable mobile devices, as for example handheld devices, with the capability to maintain sessions associated with multiple access technologies generally are insufficient for applications which utilize relatively high bandwidth. In general, the available bandwidth on the interfaces is in the range between approximately one hundred and approximately three hundred kilobits per second (kbps), which is not sufficient to support applications that are relatively bandwidth intensive.